In his welcome address, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan said that World Biofuel day is being observed since 2015 to create awareness about the importance of non-fossil fuels as an alternative to conventional fossil fuels and to highlight the various efforts made by the Government in the Biofuel sector. He said that the day reaffirms the Government’s commitment to increase farmers’ income and improve the environment. Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas said that several steps have been taken to improve the supply of ethanol for the blending programme that has resulted in supplies jumping from 38 crore litres in 2013-14 to about 141 crore litres in the ongoing season. Shri Pradhan said that the Government has notified the new National Policy on Biofuels-2018, which envisages a target of 20% blending of ethanol in petrol by 2030. The policy has widened the scope of raw material for ethanol procurement.